Saturday 27 / July / 2024
European Union member states are currently experiencing a "huge risk of terrorist attacks" due to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson said.
Speaking ahead of a meeting of EU interior ministers in Brussels, Johansson referred to a weekend knife attack in Paris, where one German tourist was killed and two people were injured.
"With the war between Israel and Hamas and the polarization it causes in our society, with the upcoming holiday season, there is a huge risk of terrorist attacks in the European Union," she said.
Johansson announced that the EU would make available an additional €30 million (approximately $32.4 million) for "protection of, for example, places of worship."
Israel strikes Hezbollah positions in Lebanon
Israel's military has again struck Helzbollah militia positions in southern Lebanon in response to what it says was shelling from across the border.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said on Tuesday that its fighter jets "struck Hezbollah launch posts, terror infrastructure, and a military compound" in response to "launches from Lebanon to Israel" on Monday.
"In addition, in response to a launch from Lebanon to the area of Zar'it in northern Israel, the IDF struck the sources of the fire," it added.
"In order to remove a threat, the IDF struck a few other locations in Lebanese territory."
Israeli forces attack Hamas-linked targets in southern Gaza
The Israeli army's offensive in the Gaza Strip has moved south to the city of Khan Younis, Israeli media reported on Tuesday.
The Times of Israel newspaper reported that Israeli forces were striking targets in the city overnight, citing Palestinian sources.
It said the army attacked targets linked to Hamas, which is considered a terror group by the US, the EU, Germany and others.
Armored personnel carriers and bulldozers were also spotted in Khan Younis on Monday, according to the AFP news agency.
The IDF said it was taking "aggressive" action against "Hamas and other terrorist organizations" in Khan Younis.
It also warned that the main road in the north and east of the city "constitutes a battlefield."
The fighting has left Palestinians with the choice of staying put in the path of the Israeli offensive or fleeing elsewhere in southern Gaza with no guarantee of safety.
The Gaza chief of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, Thomas White, lamented the situation on social media.
"Another wave of displacement is underway, and the humanitarian situation worsens by the hour," he said.
Lynn Hastings, UN humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, added: "Nowhere is safe in Gaza and there is nowhere left to go."
